§ Mrs. RocheTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will state for each year since 1987 the total sum paid in carriers' liability by each airline. [20394]
§ Mr. Nicholas BakerThe administration of the Immigration (Carriers' Liability) Act 1987 involves the Home Office in sensitive discussions with air and sea carriers. These are conducted on a "commercial in confidence" basis, and to disclose information on individual carriers, including the level of charges paid by each airline, would represent a breach of confidentiality, which could jeopardise both the carriers' commercial operations, and our own debt recovery programme.
The total sums paid between 1987 and the end of 1994 by all carriers, together with total—cumulative—charges outstanding at the end of each year are as follows:
£ millions Year Paid Total outstanding 1987 1,403,000 2,361,000 1988 2,274,000 4,680,000 1989 1,721,000 10,170,000 1990 3,433,000 15,653,000 19911 7,581,000 19,440,000 1992 4,789,000 25,775,000 1993 11,500,000 22,003,000 1994 8,652,000 224,527,000 Total paid 41,353,000 1 Charge increased from £1,000 to £2,000 per improperly documented passenger on 1 August 1991. 2 Of this sum, £9.269 million is currently the subject of settlement discussions.